Three Centuries of Russian Viola Sonatas

Discovery Club Members Save 30%!
Login or Join Today
£8.00£14.00

Catalogue No: TOCN0014
EAN/UPC: 5060640070141
Release Date: 2021-10-15
Composer: Ivan Sokolov, Mikhail Glinka, Revol Bunin, Vissarion Shebalin
Artists: Basil Vendryes, William David

The Russian viola sonata is a rare bird, not least because the instrument itself was frowned upon by the Soviet authorities; as a result Russian music for the viola has a rather patchy history. It begins in earnest in 1931, when the 1825 Sonata by Mikhail Glinka, ‘the father of Russian music’, was reconstructed from his sketches by Vadim Borisovsky, ‘the father of the Russian viola’. Thereafter, musicians and composers worked together to expand the repertoire. The relationship between the composer Revol Bunin and the violist Rudolf Barshai resulted in a sonata of 1955 which deserves wider currency. Although half a century apart, the Shebalin and Sokolov sonatas have something unusual in common: both were created as part of a triptych, alongside sonatas for violin and cello. All four composers knew how to make the viola sing – though this lyricism is often animated by moments of drama and excitement.

Basil Vendryes, viola
William David, piano

    Mikhail Glinka (1804–57)
    Viola Sonata in D minor (1825/28)

  1. I. Allegro moderato
  2. II. Larghetto, ma non troppo
  3. Revol Bunin (1924–76)
    Viola Sonata in D minor, Op. 26 (1955)*

  4. I. Allegro appassionato
  5. II. Andantino semplice
  6. III. Sostenuto – Allegro spirituoso
  7. Ivan Sokolov (b. 1960)
    Viola Sonata (2006)

  8. I. Allegro moderato –
  9. II. Andante –
  10. III. Allegro –
  11. IV. A tempo (lugubre)
  12. Vissarion Shebalin (1902–63)
    Viola Sonata in F minor, Op. 51, No. 2 (1954)*

  13. I. Con libertà – Allegro
  14. II. Andante con moto
  15. III. Allegro assai
 

* FIRST DIGITAL RECORDINGS

Reviews

There are no reviews yet.

Be the first to review “Three Centuries of Russian Viola Sonatas”

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *